Neurological consequences after portosystemic shunt attenuation in cats: a meta-analysis study

Neurological symptoms that occur after treatment of portosystemic shunts, in cats, known as post-attenuation neurological signs (PANS) can be quite severe. This study seeks to analyze a better understanding of the neurological outcomes that result from reducing portosystemic shunts in felines and provide insights that could guide future clinical approaches and treatment strategies for congenital portosystemic shunts (CPSS).The research utilized the MOOSE Checklist as a guide. PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science ScienceDirect, Embase, Scopus, ProQuest, and Google Scholar were used. The study investigated diversity using variance, Cochran Q tests with Applied fixed effects, and random effects models. A meta-regression model identified contributors. Eggers test funnel plot and Beggs test for asymmetry addressed publication bias. 12 high-quality studies were discovered from 664 research papers. This research covered years, shunt morphology, and surgery. PANS occurred 38.9% of the time in cats, while PAS occurred 20.2%. The overall PANS mortality rate was 17%, while PAS was 37.2%. The complete ligation technique was most common in subgroup analysis. PANS occurrence ranged from 26.8% to 56.5% in cats with congenital extrahepatic portosystemic shunts The cause of PANS in cats is still unknown, and there is only limited evidence to justify the use of preventive antiepileptic medications such as levetiracetam. The treatment primarily aims to control neurologic symptoms, and the long-term outlook varies, with the potential for the reappearance of symptoms.